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988 Call Centers Report Staffing, Recruitment Challenges

Psychiatric News Alert5/7/26 1:04 PM5/7/26 1:04 PM

Why It’s Relevant

Since launching in July 2022, the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline has been contacted more than 21 million times, with contacts growing consistently from year to year.

Staffing and recruitment are crucial when it comes to optimizing the Lifeline’s answer rates, wait times, and overall performance—but until now, policymakers and administrators have had limited information on which to base their decisions.

By the Numbers

  • Across 159 Lifeline centers (reflecting 77% of total centers in the United States), 71% of leaders reported that their center was understaffed, 80% reported difficulty recruiting staff, and 79% reported difficulty retaining staff.
  • The most frequently cited staffing challenge was acquiring financial resources to hire staff—89% of leaders reported difficulty doing so, including 20% who said it was “very difficult.”
  • Centers with all paid staff reported greater difficulty recruiting compared with centers using at least some volunteers (86% versus 66%, respectively).
  • Centers offering remote work reported less difficulty recruiting staff compared with centers without remote work (76% versus 89%, respectively)—but had more difficulty acquiring resources.

The Other Side

Despite a high response rate, the survey relied on self-reported data from a subset of Lifeline center leaders, which may have introduced response bias. Additionally, unmeasured state-level and regional-level factors may have influenced results.

Takeaway Message

Staffing and recruitment are serious challenges for the great majority of 988 call centers, threatening their sustainability. “Financing and operational strategies that support recruitment and retention will be critical to sustaining the quality and accessibility of 988 Lifeline centers,” the researchers wrote.

Related information

“988 Finally Connects Callers to Local Resources.”

Source

Samantha Matthews, et. al. Workforce and staffing at 988 suicide & crisis lifeline centers. JAMA Open Network. Published May 5, 2026. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.10789.

(Image: Getty Images/iStock/EvgeniyShkolenko)

https://alert.psychnews.org/988-call-centers-report-staffing-recruitment-challenges